[dalickwid aka Magdalena R]

http://www.rpi.edu/~youngb/art/illustrations/evalyn.html
http://www.rpi.edu/~youngb/art/illustrations/evalyn_color.jpg

[jr]

i see you got that bean effect crumb's always talking about down to a tee.

[dalickwid aka Magdalena R]

what's the bean effect? someone linked me to crumb's work before but i didn't really like it so i didn't stay long

but i was wondering...can pepole tell me what i need to do to become a comic book colorist? like i have no clue...like i know there's things you need to do like separating planes of depth and stuff...but what is the first step?...like you wouldn't tell a beginning penciller to learn anatomy and foreshortening and drawing from reference all at once...what are the steps?...what is the mentality you need to take?...i.e. style over substance and stuff like that...draw from life and stuff...anything...basically im just asking to critique this pic as hard as you can and advise me as if im trying to become a professional colorist...well not just a professional colorist but to be the best colorist that i can be...you know what i mean

[ March 09, 2002: Message edited by: dalickwid aka Magdalena Rules ]

[dalickwid aka Magdalena R]

i added two re-draws linked at the bottom of the original page, since so many people are saying she's a midget...i swear it's just the shoes and foreshortening playing optical illusions

[Duncan]

Dont know for sure, but i would gues the bean effect would bve the relation you have betreen the pelvis and the rib cage

[Highfive]

Whoa, dude, she's... buff, but sexy at the same time. Reminds me a little of Bisley's anatomical style, his muscular women looked pretty wicked.

Great job on your line-weight, too. It varies in all the right places. I am confused as to what that black area is around her crotch. I mean, I know it couldn't be what I THINK it is so I'm assuming it's some sort of shadow.

[Daijoobu]

Nice, but uhmm...she has no nipples.

[Blazey]

Quit looking outside yourself for an easy path to your dream. Quit asking how and just find out what you're made of.

[dalickwid aka Magdalena R]

duncan - ah ok...thanks (assuming you're right)

highfive - thanks...yeah it's a shadow...it sucks i know, ive got this phobia about messing with my pictures once im psychologically finished with them...just gotta do better next time...plus leaving it there is a nice reminder to me of how important it is to spot my blacks well...but nah it's not hair hehe

daijoooooooooobu - thanks, that's intentional

blazey - can you speak more directly to my specific situation? when people make vague philosophical statements like that i either can't think of how it would apply to my situation or i can think of a million ways that it could be interpreted to apply to my situation

[Isric]

What Blazey is saying is: You can't just show up somewhere wanting a job and say "So, like, where do I begin? What do I have to learn? Like...where should I go?" If you want to be a comic book colorist, you should read comics that have good coloring, find the names of the companies or people responsible. Learn about them, find our what programs they use, then ignore their coloring style comletely and begin studying color theory, painting full color still life images, paint figures, landscapes, experiment. Then after you've been doing this for a few years, you'll find that you've improved. That's pretty much it.
The easy answer would be to play with photoshop and practice copying famous color styles until you can get a job coloring a book, then never work again because people are tired of the 'old' style and want something new and fresh.
You've got photoshop, you've seen color, start learning.
It's just a matter of time and devotion.

[dalickwid aka Magdalena R]

HAHAHAHA...oh is that what blazey was saying? well in that case, thanks blazey that's exactly what i wanted to know...and thank you isric for the translation

and im not really concerned about getting hired...some people suck and are hired and some people are great and can't get work...like i said im just interested in becoming the best colorist i can be...but if no one will tell me where to go to learn about coloring and what all makes a good colored picture, then ill just be stumbling around in the dark trying to figure it out for myself...and there's no point in retarding my growth like that, if people who have the knowledge could just as easily tell me what things to practice and learn and consider in evaluating the effectiveness of my image...or at least point me where to learn about those things...i mean good grief, what's the point of art school if all you need to do is look at comic books, get yourself photoshop and practice til you get there? what's the point of getting critiques from people if all people need to get better is photoshop and their favorite comic books?

[Isric]

quote:

---

...i mean good grief, what's the point of art school if all you need to do is look at comic books, get yourself photoshop and practice til you get there? what's the point of getting critiques from people if all people need to get better is photoshop and their favorite comic books?

---

That's sarcasm right?

I hope you understand what I meant by my comment. It's just a matter of working hard, and no good comes of taking shortcuts, because people can see short cuts a mile away. A while ago I heard someone saying that the artists working for image comics have learned how to draw from marvel artists, not by studying real models, etc...
You can see in a lot of works (especially something like 'soul saga') that a lot of commics are drawn by people who just know comics. Meanwhile an artist like Frank Cho has obviously studied from life and has taken a long time to understand how the visual world works. The same works for coloring. If an eager kid wants to color like Liquid! for example, they can study and study and study, and in the end they'll be able to render that style perfectly. However, they won't have their own style, they won't really understand how color works (much like the artists of 'Soul Saga' don't understand how the human body works). They won't be able to think for themselves essentially.
Basically I'm just giving you an alternate answer to your question. I don't know what to tell you if you want to color like a comic book colorist. I just know you might be happier later on if you learn ALL about color, not just comic coloring. Your stuff will be more interesting, regardless of how much more valuable it would make you to comic companies.

[Malachi Maloney]

Very well spoken, Isric.

M

[dalickwid aka Magdalena R]

huh...no wonder ive been getting such shitty responses...people see "become a professional colorist" and all of a sudden they assume that i just wanna land a job applying color to a comic book page by any means necessary

that's not really what i mean...which is why at the end i said "basically i just want to know what it takes to be the best colorist i can be"...im asking for people to guide me in what i should do to grow as a colorist...not for some quick fix magic potion or some photoshop shortcuts that will suddenly make people want to pay me money to poop out artwork

i mean there's an art and a craft to applying color to an illustration and a narrative...it has rules and theories and principles and schools of thought...i don't know hardly anything about this craft though, so i was asking people to help me learn about it or point me where i can go to learn about it, or tell me what i should read and expose myself to, in order to learn about the things that go into it and how to grow as a practitioner of this art

the only reason i even used the terms "professional colorist" is so people don't judge and critique my work as just some stuff that im doing in my free time for fun...even though it is...i don't want people to deny me a harsh critique just because they think i don't care and just wanna make pretty pictures for myself or something

[ March 11, 2002: Message edited by: dalickwid aka Magdalena Rules ]

[Dark Goblinking]

I guess you could start by writing in proper English grammar, such as beginning phrases with capital letters and such, in order to actually have a professional look, rather than just hoping nobody notices. Then, you could try and change your nickname to something shorter and less confusing. When I first saw "dickwalid aka Allan Mongoose", first thing that came to my mind was, "I don't know anybody named Allan Mongoose."

The key is simple: Just color as much as possible. Sit down in front of Photoshop and paint/color away. Look at other's work, thing, "How did they achieve it?" and you can grow without the help of anyone, and have an even more solid foundation, because you will have learned everything you did because you wanted to, and not because someone force-shoved it into your skull.

Bleh.

[Novacaptain]

I have a tip for you:
Go to the "discussions" page and look for Mike's thread about the art theif.

There you'll find a huge file full of beautiful reference that is very close to the style of coloring that i think you're trying to achieve.

Study reference pictures using your present (or future) knowledge of how light and shadow work and interact with color. After doing so you'll understand how the particular "comic book style" does to simplify/exaggerate these properties of light, shadow and color and allow you to do it also. Always practice along with your studies, and by that, of course, i mean that you should color lots of drawings...color for friends, enemies, yourself...It's one of the things you can only learn doing by actually doing it (like all things in life).

[ March 12, 2002: Message edited by: Novacaptain ]

[Blazey]

You want us to guide you eh? Ok, here's the deal with what I was saying.

No one can guide you. You already know where to find the tutorials and where to buy the books that the traditional path says to take. What I'm saying is sit down and focus. Color a small section and then contemplate it. Think while you do it and you can TEACH YOURSELF and by teaching yourself you will burn away the BS shortcuts and actually become what you seek to become.

[A. Mount]

Man, you're getting your ass kicked all over the web.

[dalickwid aka Magdalena R]

so to summarize..."the only way to learn how to color is to color and study color"...well i understand that but i was just asking you guys if you could tell me which things would be most effective for me to study and learn from (i.e. a book perhaps)...thanks for your advice though, this is just what i wanted to know...sorry for the confusing terminology

[ March 12, 2002: Message edited by: dalickwid aka Magdalena Rules ]

[Blazey]

You know what freshness is? Its an artists hard fought unique journey showing thru in his work. If you keeping looking for guides on your journey your just going to travel the same path as the next fellow. Each bit of knowledge you abstract from your work says something about you and makes the ground you choose to defend stronger. Everything someone else tells you is just some bit of them that will never truly be you. Science is science, art is art, be a scientist if you want rules. Be an artist if you wanna dance with life.

[dalickwid aka Magdalena R]

hmm...i just wanna make cool pictures that myself and other people will enjoy...im not really concerned about dancing with life and exploring myself and all this...i admire and appreciate art because it's fun, and i create and learn and improve on my own art because it's fun and i can give back to the community that inspires and entertains me so much...whether that qualifies me as an artist, i don't know...but i do believe it has scientific elements...psychology(in this case visual) is the most complex science there is, but it's a science nonetheless...imho

[ March 13, 2002: Message edited by: dalickwid aka Magdalena Rules ]

[Blazey]

I suppose its just a matter of whether your a seeker or sheep.

[roundeye]

two grammar nazis in one comic colouring thread, thats too funny.

[makotierra]

My thoughts exactly, Adam!

[dalickwid aka Magdalena R]

thanks drew, but if the only thing holding me back from producing professional quality artwork is the fact i don't capitalize and punctuate according to the rules of English grammar, then ill consider myself doing just fine...i appreciate the insight otherwise though...i do agree with what you're saying there for the most part

[ March 13, 2002: Message edited by: dalickwid aka Magdalena Rules ]

[Drew]

Uh, this discussion has totally moved away from the point. If you wish to produce professional quality artwork of any kind then what you need to concentrate on is becoming a professional artist. Present yourself in a professional manner. Have you noticed that the best artists in this forum use correct grammar and spelling? That would be a good first step.
Second, consider this: In order to be a specialist ou must first learn the generalities of any subject. So, learn to be an artist. Draw, paint, sculpt, or do whatever you wish. The more you do, the better you'll become.
You don't have to go to school. For me, I think it's the right option. Others would be stifled and discouraged. It's up to you.
More specifically, you need to learn how light interacts with form and color. The best way to go about that is to follow some variation of the above steps. Good luck!

[Blazey]

Your grammar isn't holding you back. Its just a symptom of your entire condition.

[Sukhoi]

Ok! Why don't you guys just get back to the drawing boards? Produce some stuff for us all the gaze at in astonishment, instead of...whatever it is you are doing....

Let's get back to business!

Sukhoi